For the Longest Time
by EditorJax
Summary: What if Lois and Clark hadn't made it as a couple, if their problems split them apart at the end of Season 2? And what if they reunited later, for one night, and what could have been perfection ended up shattering lives? And what would happen if, years la
1. The Longest Time

WARNING: This is not the first chapter of "For the Longest Time." It is a teaser/trailer of sorts by using actual lines (in italics) from the story to invoke visual images and foreshadow the story. The first chapter of the story is to follow. I hope there is some interest because I have enjoyed my first attempt at Lois and Clark fan fic.

This story, which is a work in progress, picks up at the end of the show's second season.

Enjoy the preview and feel free to give feedback!

**"For the Longest Time"**  
**A spin-off of Season 2, episode 17, "Whine, Whine, Whine" **

**_April 1995_**  
Fearless in work. Fearful of love?

Coming into the second season episode, "Whine, Whine, Whine," Lois Lane had a lot to think about - whom did she truly love? Was it her partner and best friend, a man who had an annoying tendency to disappear without warning or explanation? Was it the man of steel who literally had swept her off her feet on numerous occasions and could be at her side in a mere second? Or was it a newcomer with a daring streak and a strong interest in being more than just friends? Would Lois choose Clark? Superman? Scardino? And when she made her decision, what if she had been too late to tell him that she loved him?

What if Clark Kent finally had given up on the idea of being happy? When he saw Lois escort Dan Scardino into her apartment the night before, he knew whom she had chosen. Could leaving be the only way to mend his broken heart, even if his assumption was wrong?

What if Lois hadn't been quick enough to get to his apartment that night to tell him she was ready to "take the next step if you are"?

What could happen if a passion that never stopped burning was reunited … for one night?

And could that passion keep burning FOR THE LONGEST TIME?

What if Lois had the professional opportunity of a lifetime - to be the keynote speaker at the Society of Professional Journalists international conference - but it meant seeing Clark again after six long months?

**_October 1995_**  
_Perry sighed. "Lois, I am not going to sit here and argue with you. Don't make me pull rank on you here, kiddo. Besides, in case you forgot, you're the keynote speaker? Who else could discuss investigative reporting better than you?" He held his breath, hoping the flattery would work._

Lois didn't buy it for a second. She was practically spitting. "I'm sure someone else can do my session." Before she knew what she was saying, she had gone into a full rant. "How about Clark Kent? You know, the man who used to be my best friend? The man who I worked side-by-side with for two years before he decided he was too good for me and for this newspaper? I do NOT want to see Clark, Perry. Therefore, I'm not going and that jerk can do my session …" 

What if Lois not only saw Clark, but acted upon an impulse that ignited at the mere sight of seeing him again?

An impulse that just may have made things perfect?

_Sunlight streamed through the window as Lois slowly opened her eyes. She could feel the sheet wrapped around her. Where were her clothes?_

She moaned, the effects of one-too-many glasses of wine from the night before …that damn wine, pounding on her head like a conga drum. At the time, it didn't seem like that much wine, she vaguely recalled in her hungover haze. It was …

Suddenly, the events of the previous night came rushing back to her. Seeing Clark, drinking the wine to mask her nervousness, that seductive dance to the old Billy Joel song … and then what? She moaned again, clutching her head as she lay still, thinking hard to remember what happened after they had danced. 

But what if that impulse shattered her world?

_Then she remembered. Clark's lips on hers, them stumbling, drunk, into the bedroom and falling onto the bed together. She could smell him on the sheets._

Then she saw it.

A folded white piece of paper on the nightstand. It simply said "Lois."

She picked it up and unfolded it.

Dear Lois. Please don't be too angry at me … 

And what would happen if they met once again?

**_June 1998_**  
_Lois stood rooted to the spot. Here in front of her was a face with the same shocked expression as hers._

This was the moment she had waited two and a half years for; to confront the man she oft had confrontations about in her dreams. But she had nothing to say as she stared at the person in front of her. He had a bruise on his arm and was thinner than she last remembered. He looked as if he had carried the weight of a thousand worlds on his shoulders. And the look in his eyes, it haunted her.

She opened her mouth to speak but he beat her to it.

"Lois," he said. "Please. I know you must hate me."

"Hate you?" she spat. "Clark, hating you would mean that I had a feeling in my heart about you. And I don't. You're nothing to me." 

Could something bring them back together again?

_"Mommy?" said a little voice. "Whatcha doin'?" _

Or, for that matter, someone?

_Clark looked her in the eye. "Then Lois, I just need to know. Is she Dan's? Is Ella his daughter?"_

He had to strain his ears to hear the response.

"_No."_

"**For the Longest Time." Coming soon. **


	2. Nothing to say

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: Chapter 1 of "For the Longest Time" picks up in June 1998. It will go backward from this chapter on to explain what has happened between Lois and Clark from the time of the events in "Whine, Whine, Whine" in April 1995, to the present, in_ _1998, when Clark has returned into Lois' life after a long absence, to find a surprise – her daughter, Ella – and to learn that she wants nothing to do with him. Although this story commences with situations and characters that have yet to be explained, I have tried to make it as general as possible to not confuse anyone. Please give feedback, and I hope you enjoy this story._

"**For the Longest Time"**

**Chapter 1**

_**June 1998**_ He sprinted up the path as fast as he could.   
He wasn't going to leave this alone.   
He wasn't going to lose her again. 

He rang the doorbell, and when there was no answer, he tried the door. It was open and he stepped inside. "Lois? Lois, I want to talk to you."

Lois stood up from where she was crouching down, picking up some of Ella's toys. "So when I don't answer the door, you think you can just waltz into my house?" She fiercely tossed the toys into a large wicker basket. "Get out."

"Let me explain," Clark said as Lois strode toward him. "I can explain."

"Sure you can." Lois swung at him. "Get out of my house, you bastard."

Clark grabbed her arms. "Stop it, Lois. Listen to me." Lois' resolve didn't change, but she did relax slightly. "I've loved you since the moment I met you, Lois. You know I love you. You have to know it. I _know_ you know it."

"Let me love you," he pleaded softly. "Lois, let me love you."

"Oh yeah?" she challenged him, pulling away from him, her eyes flashing. "Where were you all this time? Why can't you tell me where you were for the last two and a half years, Clark? How can I love you if you can't even be honest with me?"

"I…" he trailed off. Nothing he could say was going to matter. She was right, but this wasn't the time to get into the intricacies of his other identity. And he couldn't apologize for leaving. It was his birthright to defend. "I'll take care of you. I'll take care of Ella. I'll love her as my own, if you'll let me, Lois."

Lois turned around so her back was to Clark. She bit her lip and blinked hard to keep the tears from falling. How many nights had she lain awake, hoping her baby's father would come back and love her? That he wouldn't abandon Ella like her own father did?

And now here he was, pleading for her to let him take care of them.

But it was too little, too late.

"Clark," she said, taking a deep breath, "I love my daughter more than anything."

"I can see that," he said. "You're incredible with her."

"Let me finish," she said, finally turning around to face him. "But I can't subject her to the hurt when you leave again."

Clark gulped. He knew he couldn't promise he wouldn't ever leave again, especially if war broke out again on New Krypton. It was unlikely, but it was unfair to make a promise he knew he couldn't keep. Especially to a two-year-old.

"You haven't been here," she continued angrily. "You don't know … you weren't there for her first step, her first word …"

Now Clark was getting angry, not to mention confused. Who was she to be angry that he wasn't there for _her_ child's first step and first word? Ella wasn't _his _child

"I didn't even know you were pregnant, let alone that you were pregnant with Dan Scardino's child. Why don't you take our your aggression on _him_ if _he_ wasn't there for Ella?"

Lois drew in a sharp breath. How could he not know? How could he be so blind? One look at Ella and he should have known.

But he didn't.

And maybe it was better to keep it that way.

"Please leave, Clark."

"Lois…"

"No, I don't want to hear it. Please leave." She walked to the door and opened it. "I can't hear another excuse, and I can't allow myself to be drawn into what you say is the truth and then be trampled, yet again, when it turns out to be a lie."

Clark sighed. "Fine, I'll go. But this isn't the end."

Lois watched the door shut softly and sank down into the plush comfort of her couch.

Where did it all go wrong?

To be continued … 


End file.
